the end of the world comes and goes with you
by pickledoatmeals
Summary: "If you say one more word about my husband being dead, god help me, because I'll fucking kill you." In which it's the Walker Invasion, and Dean and Cas get separated. The Walking Dead AU, Established Destiel.


**Title:** the end of the world comes and goes with you

**Summary: **"If you say one more word about my husband being dead, god help me, because I'll fucking kill you."

In which it's the Walker Invasion, and Dean and Cas get separated.

**Rating: **T

**Warnings:** Not beta'd, OOCness

**Disclaimer:** No copyright infringement intended

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**I.**

"Sam!" Dean exclaimed as he rushed towards his brother, shoving the walker trying to eat the latter out of the way. He pierced the walker's skull with his knife and threw the carcass to the ground.

"You okay?" Dean asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine," Sam replied, "Thanks."

They first heard the crunching of the grass, followed by the moans of what sounded like four or five walkers. They quickly disposed of them, sticking knives to their craniums or clubbing their heads with guns.

"That should be the last of them," Dean said, "At least for now."

"Right," Sam said, hoisting up the bag of supplies from the ground, "Let's go back to the camp."

**.**

**.**

**.**

"Well, this is a rare luxury," Charlie said as she held her stick of marshmallow to the bonfire, "Marshmallows. Smores. Never thought I'd taste them again. Do you want more, Dorothy?"

Dorothy shook her head. "I'm good."

"Thanks for finding these, guys," Charlie said, "But a lot more thanks for finding beer."

Charlie, Dorothy, and the others raised their cans and said in unison, "Cheers!"

"A year ago, I was in a buy-bust operation to catch a meth dealer," Garth said.

"A year ago, I had my nose buried in college applications, but here am I now, camping at the end of the world," Kevin said, then he sipped his beer.

"Slow down, Kevin," his mum reminded, "We don't want you dying of liver cancer in the apocalypse."

"It's just a can of beer, Mum," Kevin said, "And I think that liver cancer is a better way of dying instead of getting bitten by walkers."

It was a joke, everyone knew, but its sombre truth spoke volumes.

"Hey, where's Dean?" Benny asked after a while.

"At his tent," Sam answered.

"He's not sulking again, is he?" Charlie asked.

"From the looks of it, he's sulking again," Sam said, then sighed. "I'll go check on him."

He stood up and walked towards his brother's tent, but he's not there. Instead, he found him sitting under the tree overlooking a ground of light-less houses.

"Do you want to join us?" Sam asked.

"Nah, I'm good," Dean said and took a drink of his beer.

"You know, if you want to talk about it, we're—"

"I'm not talking about it."

"He's alive, Dean. I'm sure that he's alive."

Dean didn't answer, and Sam walked away, but before he got completely out of earshot, he heard Dean say quietly, "I know that he's alive."

**.**

**.**

**.**

"So, tell us about Cas," Charlie said, "He seems... dreamy."

"I'm sure that only you and Dean find him dreamy," Sam said, "Not that Dean will admit it though."

Charlie looked to her feet, her smile being replaced by a sad one. "It must be so hard on him. If I lo— If I lost Dorothy—god forbid, if he's still out there—I don't know if I'll be able to take it."

"Hey," Dorothy murmured while rubbing Charlie's arm.

"Dean loves Cas, that's for sure," Benny said, "There was a time when we were in city, that time when my Andrea was still alive. We didn't know that city, but Cas got lost. He didn't have his phone. We don't have any way of contacting him. Dean looked for him all day, and didn't stop even at ten PM. Went to police stations, asked street vendors and passers-by... He was going crazy, but he didn't show it. He didn't give it a rest. I heard him murmuring Cas's name during his sleep."

"What happened after?" Kevin asked, "How did you find him?"

"We found him the next day. He was in another hotel, something we learned thanks to his credit card statement. Cas booked a room around midnight, and we were resting by then. We went the hotel, and when Dean found him, he hugged him so tight, I was afraid that he'd die of asphyxiation."

"He didn't tell me about that!" Sam said.

"What, the whole Cas-is-lost ruckus?" Benny asked.

"No. The hugging Cas part. He never told me that."

"That's to be expected," Benny said, chuckling.

"But why was he lost?" Charlie asked.

"He followed a bee," Benny said.

"What?" Charlie said.

"Yeah, that's what we thought," Benny said, "What about you, Garth? Mind tellin' us 'bout that buy-bust operation?"

"Hmmm... I was on a bench talking to this guy who called himself Badger. I needed to coax him to sell me meth because he was careful not to get caught. He was suspecting that I'm a police officer, and I denied that I was one. In the end, he sold me this blue meth, and when he handed it to me, I yelled, 'Freeze! Albuquerque City Police!'"

Everyone mock-clapped, and Garth mock-bowed.

"So this means that you were involved in that Walter White sensation!" Kevin said.

"Yeah, but that was about a year ago before all the drama happened," Garth said.

The conversation slipped into more comfortable topics, and more mallows and beer were consumed. The fire flickered and crackled, and everyone was yawning more frequently.

"You idjits want to continue gossiping in your slumber party or do you want to go to sleep?" Bobby asked as he got out of his tent, "It's late. Get some sleep."

Everyone stretched and yawned, and began ambling towards their tents while saying goodbye. Bobby set up his foldable chair by the fire and began his watch.

"If you need anything," Sam said, "Don't hesitate to wake us up."

"I'm only waking you, dumbass," Bobby said, "Dean needs to sleep. He's been stressing himself enough by thinking of Castiel nonstop."

"Yeah, you do that," Sam said, "Good night, Bobby."

Bobby grunted.

The air was cold atop the hill, and Bobby thanked that they killed-if killing the dead doesn't sound redundant-the walkers around the area so they can keep the fire without attracting walkers.

"And so my watch begins," he muttered.

**.**

**.**

**.**

**II.**

A week later, it was Benny and Garth's turn to do a supply run. They came back alive, with a few cuts and bruises as souvenirs.

They came back with supplies, and a man called Crowley.

"Why did you bring him?" Dean asked Benny in a place where Crowley wouldn't hear them, "You can't trust him. _We_ can't trust him."

"What do you want me to do, brother?" Benny asked, "Leave him alone for the walkers to devour? What if someone was looking for him? What if they found him, but he's already dead? What if Cas—"

"Stop," Dean said. He scrunched his face and said, "I want you to keep an eye on him."

"Dean—"

But Dean was already walking away.

**.**

**.**

**.**

"There would be at least twenty people looking for me," Crowley drawled, eating some heated pork and beans in a can, "If they all survived, that is."

"Are they your relatives?" Sam asked. He doesn't trust this guy. Background checks are needed.

But he can't blame Benny and Garth for bringing him back. Poor guy was starving from being chained to a chair for ten days, or so he said.

"No," he said, "They're my men. If walkers didn't kill them, Abaddon did."

"Your men? What are you, the Godfather? And who's Abaddon? Some World of Warcraft junkie? And I think that Crowley's a code name. I don't think that your parents actually named you after demons," said Kevin.

"Whoa, tiger, easy," Crowley said, "Are you that eager to get into my pants?"

Kevin scowled. His mother glared at Crowley.

"Abaddon is a redheaded mermaid who wants to be a part of my world. And take over it," Crowley said.

"So what you're saying is," Dean said as he strolled towards the group and claimed a spot in the ring around the bonfire, "You're Prince Eric, and Ariel wants to seize your kingdom instead of marry you."

"I won't ask you how you knew their names, Ken doll," Crowley said, to which Dean rolled his eyes, "But if you want to put it that way, then I won't stop you."

"Why would she want to seize your kingdom?" Charlie asked, "Is she the rightful heir to the throne, or she just wants to take over your land?"

"More of the latter, my dear. I'd be ecstatic to see walkers having tea and biscuits out of her putrescent corpse," Crowley said with a smile, "And I must thank our fearless king for allowing me to enter his castle, even though he eyes the newcomer with suspicion."

Dean glared at him, and stood up. "One funny business and I'll shoot you in a heartbeat."

"And here we see the king demonstrating his power to the newcomer and his subjects. How intimidating."

Dean narrowed his eyes further. "I'm taking watch."

"The king now retreats to the throne room where his queen awaits."

If Dean stumbled a little in his steps, no one noticed.

**.**

**.**

**.**

**III.**

They should have known that their peace at their hilltop camp wasn't gonna last long. Their lunch was interrupted by moans and feet dragging across the ground.

They moved quickly, grabbing weapons on their persons and tents. One by one, walkers came out from the surrounding woods, and one by one, they stopped them.

It seemed to be an endless influx of death on rotten legs. When Dean shouted _Scram!_, everyone grabbed whatever they could get, and jumped to their parked vehicles.

Dean, Sam, and Benny went straight to the Impala. Charlie and Dorothy rode in Bobby's truck, and Bobby made Crowley sit in the shotgun. The Trans were in Garth's truck.

Kevin, from his backseat at Garth's truck, stared longingly at the grounds that served as their home for a month. He may have not gotten their tent, but was with his mother and friends, but luckily, all the things they need, like food and weapons, were easy to grab. He watched the walkers follow them at a turtle's pace and looked ahead, hoping that they'll be able to find a safe place.

**.**

**.**

**.**

They found a cabin in the woods. Garth almost got bit when they were clearing it, but Dean quickly beheaded the walker with his axe. There were two more walkers, and Sam took both down. They settled in what once was the living room while Benny took his watch.

**.**

**.**

**.**

In the morning, Dean, Sam, and Benny scoured the area for remaining walkers. They took down one, two, three... they couldn't keep count. There were many, though not many enough to leave the cabin. They cleared a large enough area surrounding the cabin to sleep with two eyes closed at night. But it's not as if they'll be sleeping with two eyes closed. Ever since this _thing_ started, it was hard to have a peaceful slumber.

Their cabin might be far away from resources, but for now, it will have to do.

**.**

**.**

**.**

**IV.**

As embarrassing as it sounds, Castiel thought that there were zombie fishes. Or worse, zombie sharks. Thankfully, only humans get turned, and he wouldn't have to worry about zombie crabs crawling over him as he slept.

Or maybe, he shouldn't be thankful at all for humans turning.

He likes this camp by the sea. There are seafood now and then, but Samandriel—or Alfie, as what others call him—and Inias sometimes came back with cereals and bread and produce, and, one time, pie. It wasn't fresh, but it wasn't stale either.

He took a bite of the pie and looked at the gold band encircling his finger.

His heart ached at the memory of Dean.

**.**

**.**

**.**

"What's her name?" Gabriel asked him.

Castiel looked at him and canted his head slightly.

"Your wife. What's her name? You're married, right?"

He looked to the sea and stared at the waters worshipping the shoreline. He listened to the waters slamming against the stones, and stared at the point where the sea kissed the sky.

"Dean. My husband's name is Dean."

Gabriel asked, "How did you two get separated?"

Castiel kept his gaze to the horizon. "Walkers. They were everywhere. We were at a supply run in a grocery store, and we found another group of survivors. We hoarded supplies, but walkers came from everywhere. Everyone was panicking. People from the other group were dying. We lost Ronald, Ed, and Harry. The walkers came in waves, and the waves washed over us. The last thing I saw was Dean trying to run to me while his brother stopped him."

"What happened to the group who took you in?"

"We were separated in another walker attack. I was with Meg. We ran and ran and ran, until a walker bit her leg. She told me to run. And I did. The next thing I knew, Balthazar was tending to my wounds."

"We're glad that we found you," Gabriel said, "We're keeping you safe until you find Dean-o again. Then you can have all the reunion sex you want."

"I wish you were right."

"It's funny, though," he said, "That you call them walkers, and we call them biters."

**.**

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**.**

**V.**

Dean was right; their stay at the cabin was short-lived. Their supplies were running out, and when the sun rose, they packed up their things and set out.

Night came, and they were still in the woods. They huddled up in what warm clothes and blankets they salvaged.

He saw Charlie cuddled up against Dorothy.

He fiddled with the ring on his finger, and shut his eyes in what he knew would be a vain attempt to sleep.

Sam looked at his brother, then glanced away. He has a watch to continue.

**.**

**.**

**.**

The next day, they got lucky. Extremely lucky, considering the current situation of the world.

They found a guy named Ash hunting in the woods, and Ash took them back to the Roadhouse, where other survivors were staying. Ellen welcomed them all with a warm smile, and best part, the part that made them extremely lucky? The Roadhouse is (was) a bar.

Which means liquor.

After parking their cars in front of the bar, they quickly went inside, met by warm welcomes and warm glasses of alcohol.

**.**

**.**

**.**

Benny was regretting their choice of taking Crowley in.

He was—is?—a leader of some kind of group, which means that he's dangerous. But he also has a knack for riling people up, and if people find British accents nice to the ear, this group of people find Crowley's accent a factor aggravating their annoyance for him.

"Look, Mister," I don't appreciate you propositioning my daughter," Ellen said.

"But Madam," Crowley said, "I wasn't propositioning your daughter. I was merely showcasing my skills for double entendre."

"It's fine, Mum," Jo said.

"You heard the princess, Your Royal Highness," Crowley said, "Or would you rather have me propositioning _you_?"

Ellen cocked her rifle and aimed at Crowley.

"Alright, that's enough," Benny said.

He lowered Ellen's rifle and said, "I apologise for his behaviour. You took us in, and this is how we repaid you."

Ellen shook her head. "He's the only problem in your bunch that I see."

**.**

**.**

**.**

**VI.**

"So, what is the queen's name?" Crowley asked Dean, who was playing pool with his brother.

"None of your business," Dean said as he took a shot.

"Well then, what happened to her?"

"I said, it's none of your business."

"Did she get bit? Turned? Did you have to kill her yourself? Or did she die way before the Armageddon?"

Dean didn't answer.

"Or," Crowley said with a playful drawl, "Did you two get separated?"

Dean missed his shot, and let Sam take his turn.

Sam, who eyeing his brother and Crowley, readied himself in case things get heated. Which he prays that they won't.

"Aha," Crowley said, "So that's it. How were you separated?"

Dean still ignored him.

"How long has it been?"

Only the sound of balls being hit by a cue stick was heard.

"She's dead, you know," Crowley said, "There's no way someone would survive on her own these days. You have to let her go, Dean. She's gone."

Silence.

"Take a look at little Jo. She seems to be eyeing you."

Silence.

"Let it go, Dean. Your wife's probably dead by now."

The next thing Crowley knew was that he was being pressed against the surface of the billiard table, Dean breathing down his neck.

"If you say one more word about my husband being dead, god help me, because I'll fucking kill you."

**.**

**.**

**.**

**VII.**

There was an abundance of liquor in the Roadhouse, but basic necessities like food and water are running low.

"I'm afraid we'll have to move," Ellen said, "We've exhausted all the nearest supply source around here, and our provisions wouldn't last us a week."

She was met with silence, and Jo and ash are looking pointedly at here.

Ellen ran her hand towards the bar table, caressing it as if she were touching the cheek of daughter. She looked around, glass bottles with a low volume of amber liquid, shelves coated with a thin layer of dust, her daughter looking at her sombrely.

"Don't look at me like that, Joanna Beth," Ellen said.

But Jo didn't say a thing. Instead, she just hugged her tight.

"Screw this," Ellen muttered, "Come here too, Dr Badass!"

And Ash joined the group hug.

**.**

**.**

**.**

"The bar is Mum and Dad's first child," Jo said as she took a bite of her bread, "I kind of view it as my older sister."

Dean chuckled. "My car," he said, "He's my baby. My first baby. Cas would sometimes get jealous because he said that he doesn't like it when something else gets me wet and naked."

Jo choked on her bread.

"Sorry," Dean said, grinning, "I used to wash my baby topless, but an incident happened, and I never washed her topless again."

"That's the first time I ever saw you smile," Jo said, "It looks good on you."

Dean shook his head. "No chick-flick moments, Cady."

**.**

**.**

**.**

**VIII.**

"Didn't anyone ever teach you how to build a sandcastle, Cassie?" Balthazar asked as he looked at the slump of sand beneath Castiel's hands.

"I never got the knack for it," Castiel said as he tried to make something out of the sand he was playing with.

"Well, what things have you got a knack for?"

"...Kissing Dean."

**.**

**.**

**.**

**IX.**

"There's a beach worth two days's drive from here," Ash said, "You think your cars could hold up?"

"Yes," Bobby said, "But are you sure that the beach is safe?"

"That's what we're going to find out."

**.**

**.**

**.**

**X.**

"I think I'm turning into a mermaid with all this fish we're eating," Gabriel said.

"You can't choosy in a time like this, Gabriel," Castiel said.

"I know! But I miss my candies and chocolate! I should have grabbed a jar or two when shit hit the fan."

"And it's not like we can just move out," Anna said, "There are no walkers here, and we have plenty of supply from the sea."

"I need some sugar! Who wants to do a treasure hunt with me tomorrow?"

"If you get your damned candies, would you shut the fuck up?" Balthazar asked.

"Only if I get my damned candies."

"God, you child," Balthazar said, "Alright. We'll go on a supply run tomorrow. And make sure that you get all the candies you need."

**.**

**.**

**.**

"Do you any requests, Cassie?" Balthazar asked.

"Please stop calling me that," Castiel replied, "And yes, I would like some pie. And please check the expiration date before you grab it."

"Beggars can't be choosy, my dear."

**.**

**.**

**.**

**XI.**

"Grab everything that you can," Ellen said, "Who knows what will happen next."

"Shame that these rabbit foods are expired, Sammy," Dean said.

"Yeah," Sam said, "I wonder how the pies are. Bet they're all bad, too."

"Why don't we check them out?"

They looked for pies into the grocery store, occasionally running into the others as they went. They also grabbed some other things, like flashlights, batteries, bottled waters, medicine—

"And toilet paper. You hoard toilet paper," Chuck said.

Dean saw where the pies were located, but he stopped upon seeing two men looking at him, guns pointed towards them.

"Who are you," Gabriel said, "And what are you doing here?"

Dean rolled his eyes and pointed his gun towards them. "Isn't that obvious?"

"The end of the world doesn't make people less sassy, eh?" Gabriel said.

"Now, if you can move over, because a man needs his pie," Dean said.

"Nah, you go find your pie somewhere. I need my pie."

"Look," Sam said, standing between his brother and Gabriel, "There are two pies left, and if those aren't expired, you can evenly split them."

"Sounds good enough to me," Gabriel said, "I wonder about Rapunzel here."

"It's gonna expire on July 11th," Balthazar said, getting the pies out, "Do you have any idea what date today might be?"

"July 9th," Sam said.

"You're keeping track?" Dean asked incredulously.

"Someone has to," he answered.

"What's going on here?" Ellen asked from behind, "And who are those guys?"

"Why is everyone acting hostile towards us?" Gabriel said, "Up until a week ago, this market was our territory, then you guys had to show up."

"We're not looking for a fight," Ellen said, "And if you would be so kind to let us have some things from your territory, then that would be very much appreciated."

"As long as you leave some for us," Balthazar said, "We've got a camp to feed."

"Camp? Where?" Dean asked.

"The beach," Balthazar said.

"The beach," Ellen said quietly, "We're planning to go there."

Gabriel and Balthazar stared at Ellen and her group.

"...Oh," Gabriel said.

"Okay," Balthazar said, "If you want to go to our camp, you need to follow our one and only rule—no fighting. We couldn't afford conflicts at times like this."

"We might be full of sass," Bobby said from behind, "But we ain't troublemakers."

"I'm fine with that," Sam said, "How about you, Dean?"

Gabriel stared at Dean. "Dean? You say your name is Dean?"

"Yeah, you got a problem with that?" Dean said.

"Do you, by any chance," Gabriel said, "Know a man named Castiel?"

**.**

**.**

**.**

"THIS ISN'T PISTON CUP, McQUEEN!" Gabriel screamed over the rumble of the engine and screeching of tires, "SLOW THE FUCK DOWN!"

"YOU'RE TELLING ME TO SLOW DOWN," Dean shouted, "WHEN I JUST LEARNED THAT MY HUSBAND'S FUCKING ALIVE AND HE'S WAITING FOR ME?"

"HE'S NOT GOING ANYWHERE!" Gabriel cried, but the Impala just sped on.

**.**

**.**

**.**

The first thing Dean noticed were how blue Castiel's eyes are, and how wide and glassy they are as they stared right back at him.

Dean couldn't move. He just stared at those eyes, and the tears streaming down from them to the cheeks he every so often caressed with his thumb.

He couldn't move, but he saw Castiel slowly making his way towards him, and that's all he needed before rushing towards him and taking him into his arms and hugging so tightly, possibly even tighter than what he did back in that day at the city.

Castiel sobbed onto his neck, and he would never admit it, but he, too, was crying.

"I knew that I would see you again," Dean said, voice muffled by his lips pressed firmly on Castiel's forehead. He kissed both of his cheeks, his nose, his lips, and their tongues reunited after a long while of separation.

Their bodies moved on their own accord, and before they knew it, they broke apart, resting their foreheads against each other, just basking in the presence of the company that they've been deprived.

"We're never going to get separated again," Dean said, "I promise."

**.**

**.**

**.**

That night, when they were tangled in sheets and limbs under the stars and in front of the roaring fire, they mapped out each other's skin and revisited their favourite places in the other's body, committing every detail into their memory. Each thrust is a _You're mine_, each grip on the hair is an _I'm yours forever_, each gentle stroke an _I miss you_, each kiss planted an _I love you_ in volumes louder than their voices could manage.

And every time their eyes meet, and the corners of their eyes crinkle with each corner of their mouth turned upwards, an _I'm so glad we're both here_ resonates within them, and suddenly, the end of the world is not so bad anymore.

**.**

**.**

**.**

And in the morning, where they wake up with their bodies covered in nothing but annoying flaky crusts and a crisp white sheet, they laugh, until those laughs dissolve into giggles and turn into kisses exchanged between swollen lips, because nothing else matters but two pieces of a single soul never meant to separated.

They weave their hands together, and their rings clink softly, sweetly, until their lips and hands are all over each other again.

For now, they wouldn't mind things.

But later, they know that they would have to deal with whole camp being cranky for not getting enough sleep because of them, and that makes them laugh all the more, and all thoughts of the Apocalypse are cast aside.

**.**

**.**

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_end._

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**A/N:** Thanks for reading! Please leave a review if you have time :))


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